Back on the train. Jealous of the students and coaches from my school headed off to Penn Relays on the train, while I get off a few stops earlier for NCTM. Looking forward to the day…
Supporting the Mathematical Practices: What’s In Your Coaching Toolkit?
This session had an interesting opening activity. Seven statements about classroom culture were provided, and teachers were asked to assess themselves on a continuum? Some examples
- From focus on correct answer towards focus on explanation and understanding.
- From mathematical authority coming from the teacher or textbook to mathematical authority coming from sound student reasoning.
Already, the activity caused me to reflect upon the textbook-driven culture in schools, and how we approach classroom practice.
How can we provide optimal learning opportunities for students to become mathematically proficient? The team create a check list of “look-fors” which cover each of the 8 Common Core standards, and shifts in classroom practice which attempt to match the new standards.
This was one of the best sessions I have attended, as I have some great ideas here for guiding the teachers I work with through the increased rigor of the Common Core.
Unfortunately, I am off to a track meet tonight, so today’s post is a quickie. A late night tonight, then an early train tomorrow for more sessions.
mathcoachblog 